Living with obesity: The people who are hard-wired to store fat

Specialist health professionals say it is time for obesity to be regarded as an illness caused by genetics, biology and how we live today.

New research adds to growing scientific opinion that "healthy obesity" does not exist. The findings show those who are significantly overweight have a 66% higher risk of developing chronic kidney disease, compared with those of a normal weight.

Sarah has lived with obesity her entire adult life. The 39-year-old mum has a Body Mass Index, or BMI, of over 40, which means she is medically classified as having "severe obesity" and is overweight enough for her health to be at risk.

"People think you're unintelligent, that you're lazy, that you eat too much, that you've done this to yourself. That it's a choice," she says. "I just want to scream and say none of those things are right."

Sarah has spent most of her life trying to control her weight through diet and exercise, and says her obesity is something that she thinks about every day.

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